Escape

The blast still rang in Viktor's ears as they raced through the dark Berlin streets. Katerina led them through a maze of alleys, the sound of police sirens getting louder behind them.

"This way," she whispered, pulling them into a tight passage between buildings.

Luca's breath came in short gasps. Blood trickled from a cut on his face. "How did you find us?"

Katerina didn't slow down. "Later. We need to get out of Berlin. Now."

A black van waited at the end of the alley. The driver, a young man with a scar across his chin, nodded as they neared.

"Prague," Katerina told him. "Fast."

Viktor grabbed her arm. "Prague? Why not back to Moscow or New York?"

"They'll be watching all flights," she said, pushing him into the van. "And every train station. Trust me, Viktor. Prague is our best chance."

Five hours later, as the sun began to rise, they crossed the Czech border. No one had spoken much during the drive. Viktor's mind raced with questions. Who had misled them? Was it really Ivan? And why had Katerina suddenly come to save them?

The car dropped them at a small hotel in Prague's Old Town. The house was ancient, with thick stone walls and small windows.

"We'll be safe here," Katerina said, taking them to a room on the top floor. "For now."

As soon as the door closed, Luca turned on her. "Start talking. How did you know where to find us?"

Katerina's face stayed calm. "I've been tracking Nikolai for months. When I heard you two were in Berlin, I knew it was a trap."

"Why should we trust you?" Viktor asked. "Last time we met, you were working for Nikolai."

A small smile crossed her face. "Things change. Nikolai is not the same man you remember, Viktor. What he plans to do with The Network... it's worse than you know."

Luca paced the small room. "We need to contact Anya in New York."

"Not yet," Katerina warned. "Nikolai has eyes everywhere. If you make a call, he'll find us within hours."

Viktor stared out the window at the red roofs of Prague. The city was waking up, unaware of the risk hiding in its midst.

"We need weapons," he said eventually.

"Already taken care of." Katerina opened a closet door, showing a small stash of guns and money. "But we need to be smart. Nikolai doesn't know you escaped the factory yet. We have maybe a day before he realizes."

A sharp knock on the door made them all freeze. Viktor drew his gun, nodding to Luca to take position beside the door. Katerina pulled a knife from her boot.

"Room service," a man called in Czech.

They traded worried looks. They hadn't ordered anything.

Luca mouthed the words: "Not again."

Viktor approached the door slowly. Through the peephole, he saw a young hotel worker with a tray. Nothing suspicious.

He opened the door just enough to speak. "We didn't order—"

The man's face changed in an instant. He dropped the tray and reached inside his jacket. Viktor slammed his shoulder against the door, crushing the man's arm. A gun clattered to the floor.

Katerina moved fast, pulling the man into the room and pinning him down.

"Who sent you?" she asked, her knife at his throat.

The man spit on the floor. "You're already dead. All of you."

Luca searched him, finding a phone and an earpiece. "He's not alone."

As if on cue, they heard footsteps pounding up the stairs.

"Fire escape," Viktor ordered, grabbing the bag of guns.

They climbed out the window onto a rusty metal platform. The Prague skyline spread before them—towers, spires, and ancient roofs.

"Jump!" Katerina yelled as bullets pinged against the metal fence.

They jumped to the next building, rolling onto a flat roof. Viktor's shoulder screamed in pain, but he kept moving. Behind them, three men in black climbed through the window.

"This way!" Luca led them across the rooftops, jumping gaps and climbing walls with surprising agility.

Viktor followed, amazed at how in sync they'd become. Six months ago, they'd been foes. Now they moved like one person, anticipating each other's thoughts and movements.

The chase continued across the Prague roofs. They slid down drainage pipes, crashed through an apartment (terrifying an old woman eating breakfast), and finally lost their pursuers in a crowded marketplace.

"Charles Bridge," Katerina panted, pointing west. "I have a boat waiting."

They pushed through the morning visitors, keeping their heads down. The famous bridge stretched across the Vltava River, lined with statues of saints.

Halfway across, Viktor noticed them—men in dark clothes moving through the crowd from both ends of the bridge, closing in.

"We're trapped," Luca muttered.

Viktor's eyes met his, a quiet question passing between them. Luca nodded slightly.

"Now!" Viktor yelled.

They leaped over the stone railing, Katerina a split second behind them. The cold river hit Viktor like a punch, knocking the air from his lungs. The river pulled them downstream, away from the shouts and screams above.

They swam to land near an old boathouse. Soaking wet and shivering, they found brief shelter in a small art gallery.

"The owner owes me a favor," Viktor explained as they dried off in a back room filled with paintings.

Luca pulled out the phone they'd taken from the attacker. "Let's see who he was talking to."

The phone showed several text messages in code. Katerina's face went pale as she read them.

"What is it?" Viktor asked.

"It's worse than I thought," she whispered. "Nikolai isn't just trying to find you. He's using your names to take over your operations."

"What do you mean?" Luca asked.

Katerina showed them the phone. "These are orders to your people in New York, supposedly from you. Telling them to move certain shipments, change security protocols..."

"He's taking control of our network," Viktor realized. "With everyone thinking the orders are coming from us."

The phone buzzed with a new message. A movie file.

They watched in fear as the screen showed their Moscow headquarters in flames. Bodies covered the ground. And walking through the carnage was Nikolai, smiling at the camera.

"Viktor, Luca," his voice was calm, almost friendly. "By now you know I've taken what's mine. But I'm not finished yet."

The camera panned to show a familiar face tied to a chair.

"Anya!" Viktor gasped.

Nikolai stroked her hair as she fought against her restraints. "You have something I want. The last seal. Bring it to me, or she dies." His smile broadened. "You have 24 hours. I'm sending coordinates now."

The video finished. Luca and Viktor stared at each other in shock.

"What seal is he talking about?" Katerina asked.

Viktor's hand went to his pocket, where a small metal item had been hidden since Moscow. His face turned grim.

"The one thing that could destroy us all."